Intricate Carvings in Ostrich Eggshells are 60,000 Years Old - and Reveal ‘Remarkable’ Human Thinking
Archaeologists have discovered 60,000-year-old ostrich eggshells in South Africa featuring complex, organized geometric engravings. The findings suggest that early Homo sapiens possessed advanced cognitive abilities and visual planning skills.
Why it matters
This discovery provides new evidence regarding the evolution of human abstract thinking and symbolic communication in early history.
Dating back more than 60,000 years ago, humans in southern Africa were engraving ostrich eggshells with intricate geometric patterns that—the longer we study them—look more organized than we previously realized.
A new analysis of the markings found on hundreds of eggshell fragments has revealed our ancestors’ remarkable ability to organize visual space according to abstract principles.
Hundreds of the highly unusual egg fragments were found at several archaeological sites where, researchers believe, they were engraved by groups of Homo sapiens who lived in that region.
The investigation team from the University of Bologna concluded for the first time that these engravings on ostrich eggshells were not random or improvised, but followed recurring and surprisingly organized geometric rules, according to the study published in the journal PLOS One.
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